Differences between the anime and manga
Like many another manga series, when adapted to become an anime series, Elfen Lied underwent changes in plot, setting, situations and characters. Each of the Thirteen regular episodes plus the OVA compress the events of sometimes several manga chapters, and not always in the exact order depicted in the manga, usually owing to the multi-chapter flashbacks. The purpose of this article will be to do an episode-by-episode documentation of the various differences between the two versions, showing especially what elements from the manga are compressed, changed or eliminated from the anime. The wisdom or popularity of the changes can be an issue for debate and discussion on the talk page, but here only the changes themselves should be listed. 'A Chance Encounter ~ Begegnung ' Manga Chapters Used as Basis : 1, 2 *In the manga, a Vice-Minister from the Japanese government, concerned about budget overruns at the Diclonius Research Institute, is given a tour by Director Kurama, and is witness to the bloody escape of Lucy, who is being transferred into an even more secure chamber as the series begins. In the anime, there is no minister or other visitor, and Lucy escapes from the regular chamber where she is held, with no mention of a pending transfer. *While the manga shows a few odd events before Lucy's escape that point to an outside force aiding her, the anime shows a figure in the control room whose face and body go unseen manipulating such things as the outer gate controls. *The murder of Kisaragi, while an almost casual thing in the anime, is somewhat extended in the manga, with Lucy actually holding Kisaragi hostage, and Kurama informing her that she must be sacrificed. Though Kisaragi agrees, Lucy subsequently makes this brave sacrifice pointless and taunts Kurama about it. ---- 'Annihilation ~ Vernichtung' Manga Chapters used as basis : 3,4,5,6,7 *In the manga, both Kouta and Yuka are on the beach when he finds Nyu, with Yuka knocked out from behind by Bando. In the anime, Yuka avoids this and is the one who finds Kouta after he alone is knocked out. *In the anime, Kouta and Nyu take flight trying to escape the SAT before he is knocked out. In the manga, the two never have that chance. *In the manga, Mayu finds the umbrella Yuka dropped when she was knocked out; In the anime, it is Kouta's umbrella, carried over by Nyu as Bando and Satou drag her across the beach. *In the manga, the Kamakura police seem to know who and what Lucy is; one of them even holds a grudge for a guard killed during her escape from the island facility; In the anime, they are as confused as anyone as to why this girl is considered dangerous. In the anime, Yuka speaks to the same officers that questioned Kouta; In the manga, she is on the beach with Kouta and never speaks to them. *The anime introduces Nana at the end; The manga's similar scene has a never-named Diclonius girl who may be dead from experiments and who Kurama declares not useful for their purposes. ---- 'Deep Feelings ~ Im Innersten' Manga Chapters used as basis : 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 *The Music Box, prominent in many anime episodes, is first shown here. It does not exist in the manga, its plot elements taken mostly from the eventual introduction of Nozomi. *The corrseponding manga chapters hint through images of the brutal nature of the deaths of Kouta's father and younger sister Kanae, almost confirming that they were murdered. The anime merely states through Yuka that Kouta's memories are wrong, and leaves the nature of their deaths unstated for now. Deep Feelings ~ Im Innersten ---- 'Attack ~ Aufeinandertreffen ' Manga Chapters used as basis : 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 *In the anime, Lucy cuts off the fingers on one of Nana's hands at the same time as she takes her first leg. This does not occur in the manga. *In the anime, Professor Kakuzawa is called by the given name 'Yu', while Shirakawa is called by the given name 'Shino'. These names do not appear in the manga, nor do they appear very often in the anime. In the Elfen Lied series, most characters do not have both a given and a family name. ---- 'Receipt ~ Empfang ' Manga Chapters used as basis : 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26 *While deeply concerned for Mayu's well-being, Kouta and Yuka do not directly discuss adopting Mayu in the manga as they do in this episode. *The seasonal closing of the bakery stand is not brought up in the anime, and the Bakery Merchant's concern for Mayu is more explicit in the anime. *The grandfather clock that so fascinates Nyu is mostly in the background in the manga. *The woman who claims to be Wanta's true owner is even ruder and more accusatory towards Mayu in the manga. In neither case do we see Wanta leave her nor is this character heard from again, except briefly in the manga as a fear of Mayu's. *The two policemen who have come to take Mayu in for loitering on the beach (perhaps implied to be reported by the woman who took Wanta) do not appear in the manga, nor are Kouta, Yuka and Nyu waiting to take her to Maple House. There is only one policeman, warning her of potential beach flooding, which causes her to run, eventually returning to Maple House when she feels she has no other options. *In the manga, Nyu's trip to the University with Kouta and Yuka includes an encounter with the blinded Bando, who recognizes her voice and who makes a semi-comical attempt to capture her. This is not shown in the anime. The manga also features Nyu's encounters with other students, including near-misses at having her hair ribbons removed. *In the manga, Bando is brought by Isobe to the university for a contentious consultation on his infection, including an offer from Professor Kakuzawa to be father to new Diclonius children. None of this occurs in the anime. *When he has Nyu/Lucy captive in the anime, Professor Kakuzawa does not mention the Lebensborn Project, though his intentions are the same. He also describes his plan to originally free Lucy from the island facility, which was subtler in the manga, and included an unneeded back-up plan. ---- 'Innermost Feelings ~ Herzenswärme ' Manga Chapters used as basis : 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 38, 39, 40 *When Bando makes his escape from the Doctor performing cybernetic surgery on him in the manga, he passes Isobe, his escort and assures him that he will return when he's ready to face Lucy. Isobe plays no role in this in the anime. *The meeting of Mayu and Bando is a much more tense affair in the anime, with the young girl seemingly set to heed his warning to stay away. Bando is a harsher figure here. *Nana awakes on the beach surprised by her new limbs in the anime. In the manga, she had a chance to see and test them before leaving the Diclonius Research Institute. *On the street after her escape from Professor Kakuzawa, Lucy kills at least one more victim in the manga than in the anime. *In the manga, it is an unfortunate secretary and not Shirakawa that Kurama ends up scaring the wits out of when he tells her about the fate of his wife and daughter. *The rain-shelter encounter between Kouta and Yuka is more explicit in the manga, to the point of being almost a sexual encounter, and goes beyond his mere accidental sighting of her panties. *The reunion between Kouta, Yuka and Lucy/Nyu goes differently in the anime, being two ends of a sequence that in the manga frames Lucy's extended flashback to her and Kouta's childhood days together. ---- 'Confrontation ~ Zufällige Begegnung ' Manga Chapters used as basis : 41, 42, 45, 46, 47 *Nozomi is introduced in the manga about this time. She makes no appearance in the anime, nor is she mentioned. ---- 'The Beginning ~ Beginn ' Manga Chapters used as basis : 17, 32, 40, 43, 46, 48, 49, 50, 52 *In the manga, as Arakawa travels to the Diclonius Research Institute, she carries with her the severed head of Professor Kakuzawa, carried in a small caged case like those used for carrying pets. In the anime, she uses what appears to be a simple cloth bag. *In the manga, Arakawa is guided to an underground grotto that Chief Kakuzawa explains as being his ancestors' resting place. In the anime, she is guided instead to the Chief's office. *After she is shot in the manga, Arakawa undergoes an extended flashback on her life. This is not shown in the anime. *The conversation between Nana and Mayu concerning her past and who Lucy is takes place much later in the manga's run, well after the arcs depicted in the anime. *In the anime, Kurama objects to the presence of Arakawa. In the manga, he had long since left the Institute by the time of her arrival. *In the manga, the scene with the orphanage attendants is recalled well after the flashback revealing the puppy and Tomoo as well as the girl who who may have betrayed Lucy's confidence. In the anime, these scenes are shown almost in succession. *The sequence of events leading to Kurama's departure from the island facility are seeded early on in the manga, while the anime is more than halfway through before Chief Kakuzawa reveals his plans for Diclonius supremacy. *The unfortunate puppy is beaten to death with a rock in the manga, and with a vase in the anime. *Young Lucy (Kaede) angrily yells at her tormentors in the anime before killing them; In the manga, she first laughs psychotically, and Tomoo at least sees the others die before him. ---- 'Reminiscence ~ Schöne Erinnerung' Manga Chapters used as basis : 33, 34, 35, 36, 49 *In the manga, young Kouta's day prior to first meeting young Lucy is shown; this is not present in the anime *In the manga, there is a gap of some days before Kouta is able to return to Lucy after defying his father; In the anime, he returns the next day despite the murders in the area. *In the manga, Lucy is shown burying something at her puppy's grave that is not revealed until the final chapter. Neither one of the items she buries nor the burial itself are present in the anime. *In the manga, Kouta spots out Lucy at the festival; he only wonders if he sees her in the anime. ---- 'Infant ~ Säugling' Manga Chapters used as basis : 52, 54, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62 *In this episode, Chief Kakuzawa arrives at the conclusion there must be a queen Diclonius. In the manga, this is a realization made by Kurama and Professor Kakuzawa and based not on intuition, but the scientific method. *In the manga, it is briefly mentioned that Oomori leaves the facility after his daughter is euthanized, while it is merely implied in the anime. *The reason Professor Kakuzawa left the island facility is stated explicitly in the anime; in the manga, it is merely implied. *The manga makes it clear that the Kuramas have endured repeated disappointments in their efforts to have a child, and shows homelife scenes with Hiromi wondering exactly what he does. The anime shows only the complications with the birth of Mariko. *In the manga, Mayu does not become caught up in a fight between Lucy and Nana at the door of Maple House. Also, her decision to stay comes as part of some reverse-psychology tricks by Mayu and Kouta in the manga; In the anime, it is her choice, both sincere (realizing that Nyu is in fact not Lucy) and tactical (keeping an eye on Nyu for signs Lucy has returned) ---- 'Complication ~ Vermischung' Manga Chapters used as basis :50, 53, 54, 55 *In the anime, Chief Kakuzawa says that the bombs inside Mariko were Kurama's own idea. In the manga, it was the Chief who asked for a control mechanism, but Shirakawa who suggested they use bombs, in part out of jealousy of Kurama's child by another woman. *In the manga, Kurama's departure from the island facility was not the sudden recent thing shown in this episode. *In the manga, while interested in finding out who saw his late son's horned head, Chief Kakuzawa placed Arakawa on research into the virus itself, not naming and locating the student in question (Kouta) as shown in this episode. *In the manga, the alliance between Kurama and Bando, while contentious, was a more permanent and planned-out thing than the one-time event depicted in the anime. *When Nyu cut her hair to copy Kanae in the manga, Nana had not yet moved in. *In the manga, Nana no longer refers to Wanta as a 'creature' once she moves in. *In the manga, Nana was not at Maple House with Mayu when she and Mariko sense each other. Rather, the whole group of them were already in or near Kamakura's beachfront or Enoshima Park when she asks them to wait for her at home. *In the manga, Shirakawa is not initially present when Mariko reaches Kamakura. *The two recurring policemen are not seen as often in the manga. *In the anime, all Diclonius have pink hair. In the manga, at least in color shots from the volume covers, only Lucy/Nyu's hair is pink; Nana's is blue, while Mariko's is blonde. An anime shot seems to have Mariko's hair as blonde, but this is merely sunlight filtering the scene. ---- 'Quagmire ~ Taumeln' Manga Chapters used as basis : 51, 56, 57, 65, 68, 70, 71 *In this episode, Mayu refers to Kouta and Yuka as the father and mother of Maple House; despite deep respect and affection, she never says this in the manga. *In the manga, Kouta is kept behind the police blockade, which is not knocked out, and never becomes involved with either Nana or Lucy's fights against Mariko. *In the manga, Nana manages to recover after her initial defeat by Mariko, spurred to action by a threat Mariko made against Kurama, and is able to fight back after seizing the momentum. She does not fall off a bridge, and is in control of the fight when she disables Mariko's vectors. *In the manga, Kurama travels to the battle scene not with Bando, but with a soldier from the Diclonius Research Institute that he has deceived into aiding him. *In the manga, Kanae and Kouta's father tries to rush Lucy when he sees his daughter die, to avenge her, before he is killed. In the anime, he barely has time to see Kanae's body before Lucy kills him. *In the manga, Bando's support was tactical, and used against Mariko. In the anime, he arrives later and seizes the chance to take on Lucy, who he did not face in the same story arc in the manga. *Lucy kills Shirakawa in both versions. However, in the anime, Shirakawa is merely in sight when Lucy lashes out, and is split in two by Lucy at the waist. In the manga, Shirakawa was trying to save the remote control cell phone that would have deactivated Mariko's internal bombs, her head sheared off by Lucy as she destroys the cell phone. Kurama witnesses and regrets her death in the manga; he is not present for it in the anime. *Shirakawa's status as a spy for Saseba against Chief Kakuzawa never comes into play in the anime. *The method of Shirakawa's death triggers the full return of Kouta's lost memories in the anime. In the manga, they return in a later arc never adapted to the anime, when Lucy/Nyu uses the same method to kill a clone of Mariko. *The flashback in which Kouta buys the Lilium music box from a gift shop is unique to the anime. *Lucy hums Lilium as a reminder of the song she learned from Kouta's music box in the anime's penultimate episode; In the manga's closing chapters, while a separate event under different circumstances, she sings the song Elfenlied, taught to her by Nozomi, a character who does not appear in the anime. *The manga has Kanae able to see Lucy's vectors; while never classified, this was either a sign of a unique ability on Kanae's part or the vibratory rate of Lucy's enraged vectors forcing them to become visible; In the anime, she apparently saw only the murderous results, not the vectors themselves. ---- 'No Return ~ Erleuchtung' Manga Chapters used as basis : 67, 69, 71, 72, 84, 98, 99 *In the manga, Kurama surprises both Nana and Mariko with his sudden appearance in the midst of their battle, and then enters into an extended flashback on how he joined the Diclonius Research Institute and the events leading to Mariko's birth. Mariko recognizes him as her father without being told. In the anime, Kurama only approaches Mariko after recovering Nana, his past already explained in a prior episode's private flashback. Mariko only knows that Kurama is her father due to slips on Isobe's part. *Since Kouta does not recover his memories until the manga's concluding arc, it is likely no one outside of Yuka knew how his family died (at least as directly depicted), though Nana seems to know of his amnesia later on. In the anime, Yuka tells Mayu, and with his memories returned, it seems likely Nana was told as well later on. *In the manga, Nana was shocked and devastated to learn that she was not Kurama's biological daughter. In the anime, she is either more accepting once she learns this, or somehow knew all along, for she is not shocked or put off when this is directly and indirectly stated in this episode. *In the manga, the battle of Lucy against Mariko has several mitigating factors and distractions that Lucy uses to her advantage : The bomb remote-control, the presence of Kurama and Nana and the field of fire they are all in. In the anime, the battle is all-out, giving Mariko a nearly supreme advantage, enabling her to soundly and decisively beat Lucy almost without being touched. *In the manga, Mariko comes to accept Nana, even asking her to care for their father when she faces Lucy. While she accepts her father's love, and Nana later mourns Mariko, no such reconciliation occurs in the anime. *In the manga, Mariko, her legs cut off by Lucy, grabs hold of her before being beheaded, with her bombs shredding Lucy's horns, forcing her reversion to Nyu. In the anime, one of Lucy's horns is lost to the fight with Mariko, while the other is lost--seemingly as she dies--facing one last set of soldiers sent to capture or kill her. Whether a second anime season would have seen these horns return as they did in the manga cannot be known. *Two future plotlines that did occur in the manga chapters that were not adapted for the anime are possibly hinted at in the anime finale. When Isobe tells Chief Kakuzawa that Mariko's vectors have been disabled, the Chief says they still have use for her, even if her powers are gone, a possible reference to the clone Mariko storylines. Also, when Arakawa asks if she can have a bath, the Chief says to make herself at home, since he has plans for her, a possible reference to Arakawa's role in weaponizing the Diclonius virus as part of the Chief's master plan for Diclonius supremacy, which in the manga, was realized during and not after the events regarding Mariko. Also, his own horns were revealed, indicating that this too was to play a role. *In the manga, Lucy/Nyu is never thought to be dead after the events with Mariko, and returns with Kouta and Nana to Maple House and remains Nyu for close to a year. *In the manga, Kurama survives Mariko's death but is mentally unstable for a long while to follow. *The reunion between Kouta and Lucy after the former recorvers his memories is vastly different in both versions. In the Manga, they both reunite on the beach, and later go to a lighthouse. There Lucy explains him all about her inner voice and the reasons for killing his family before breaking down and desperately begs for his forgiveness. In this version Kouta is truly resentful towards her, coldly stating that he will never forgive her for what she'd done no matter how much she apologized. He also said, twice, that he hated her and wanted to kill her to avenge his family, though further actions might reveal that he still held love for her even after how much she had wronged him, offering to stay with them (provided she never killed again) and even willing to risk his live to save hers. In the Anime, the reunion happens in a stone staircase. Lucy never says anything about her inner voice, instead just cryptically states that she was born to wipe out mankind, she also assures him that she can do so in just five years, but refuses to because that would mean his death. Kouta here seems to understand that something truly horrible must have happened to shape her into a cold-blooded killer and, while still stating he couldn't bring himself to actually forgive her, he openly admits that he still loves her, then they kiss and hug passionately, after which she leaves to confront a horde of soldiers. *Lucy's death is also radically different, In the Anime, she loses her second horn against a large group of soldiers. After that, it's implied in the closing scene that she might have actually survived. The Manga version has Lucy pushing her body to the limit in and attempt to destroy the whole world in revenge for her own suffering. She then turns that planet-shattering power to instead heal Kouta, who was fatally shot by Kurama in an attempt to kill Lucy. Kouta wakes up to find Lucy's decaying body. Later, the Maple Inn's residents all reunite with them, only to be ambushed by the forces of Saseba. It's then when Lucy's third personality (Arguably the real ''mastermind behind all of her murders) takes full control and tries once again to destroy the Earth. However, the personalities of Nyu and Kaede (The original one) contact Kouta and urge him to kill their body. Kouta, surprisingly, initially refuses, not willing to kill his beloved friend even after all she'd done. In the end, rather than avenging his family, Kouta shoots and kills Kaede out of pure pity, after even this worst personality can no longer stand the pain. ---- 'Regenschauer ~ Rainstorm''' Manga Chapter used as basis : 85 *Most of the events in this episode do not take place in the manga. The flashback sequences in the anime do not include the more extensive investigation done by Kurama and Professor Kakuzawa as they realize Lucy's existence and move to find her. The anime also does not name Lucy's tragic friend Aiko Takada, and cuts out the backstory with her parents, how she met Lucy, or the reasons they were fleeing. *In the manga, Kurama follows up his telling Lucy that Aiko has died with a chastisement against them both for not surrendering immediately, thus bringing about the shooting. He also delivers one against Diclonius for not wishing to co-exist with Humans, an argument Lucy finds hypocritical and infuriating, and seemingly cements her enmity towards Kurama as much as if not more than her friend's tragic death. ----